Over the yearsanimehas given fans some very interesting characters to relate to. From lovable protagonists to menacing villains and hilarious side characters to quirky love interests, the anime medium has had no shortage of intriguing characters. But the ones that stood out the most were those that had a deep and disturbing past.
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These characters became forever haunted by what they had once experiencedand fueled by hatred, they dedicated their lives to trying to right the wrong that was done to them. Some achieved their goal, while others ended up losing themselves in their thirst for revenge. Nonetheless, they became some of the most iconic anime characters of all time. These heroes continued to rely on their hatred anddelivered many intriguing storylines and exciting fight scenesfor fans to enjoy. Here are the most iconic anime heroes that were fueled by the power of hatred.
5Kurapika – Hunter x Hunter
Kurapika is a skilled nen userwho is now the last surviving member of the Kurta Clan. The Kurta clan was a unique breed of humans whose eyes turned a violent scarlet shade when they got emotionally agitated. These scarlet eyes would then allow the clan members to wield superior physical strength and use extraordinary nen abilities. Due to the uniqueness of their eyes, the Kurta clan was massacred by the Phantom Troupe, causing Kurapika to spiral down the path of revenge.
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Fueled by hatred, Kurapika swore to avenge his fallen brothers and sisters and eradicate the members of the Phantom Troupe. To achieve this goal, Kurapika inflicted his Judgment Chain with conditional limitations which allowed him to use immense strength, but if the conditions were to be violated, a nen blade would pierce his heart. The conditions of this new power were that Kurapika could only use the Judgment Chain when his eyes turned scarlet, and only against the members of the Phantom Troupe.
4Sasuke Uchiha – Naruto
The Uchiha Clan was one of the strongest clans in Hidden Leaf Village, so much so that the Hokage feared they would end up turning on the village and take control of it. To ensure that a coup like this would never occur, the Village leaders ordered one of the Uchiha’s own members to eradicate the entire clan. Itachi Uchiha, whose interests solely lay in the safety of the village, was chosen to carry out this gruesome task. Itachi then proceeded to massacre every single one of his clan members except for his little brother, Sasuke Uchiha.
Sasuke was only seven when the massacre happened and could not comprehend the reason behind it. From that day on, he bore a strong hatred toward his brother and made it his goal to kill him.In his quest for revenge, he turned on the Leaf Village, became a rouge ninja, let Orochimaru control him, and tried to kill his friends several times, all to become strong enough to defeat his brother.
3Guts – Berserk
Guts may just be the most tragic anime protagonist everdue to the barrage of betrayals and agony he had to face throughout his life. He was born to a woman hanging dead from a tree, lost his adoptive mother when he was three, was abused and violated by a mercenary, and sold by his father figure. In short, Guts has experienced tragedy after tragedy for as long as he can remember. But the true turning point for this hero came after he was betrayed by his friend and leader, Griffith.
Griffith was the leader of the mercenary group known as the Band of the Hawk who enlisted Guts as a member of the band. It was there that Guts met Casca, who he took a liking to. Sometime later, however, Griffith doomed his entire band by branding them to be sacrificed to demons in order to gain inhumane power. The night that this sacrifice occurred, the entire band got brutally massacred by the hands of demons, and Casca was tortured and violated by Griffith himself. Guts and Casca managed to survive the night, but in the process, Casca lost her sanity and Guts became obsessed with taking revenge.
2Thorfinn – Vinland Saga
Thorfinn was a happy little child content with all that he had, a loving mother, a dependable sister, and an admirable father. His life was nothing special but in a world plagued by war, ordinary things were more than enough. However, that all changed when a group of bandits appeared to assassinate Thorfinn’s father, Thors, who was regarded as the strongest warrior all around.
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Thors confronted the mercenaries, taking most of them down single-handedly, but when he discovered that his son was also amid the chaos, he willingly surrendered.He exchanged his own life for his son’sand ended up dying at the hands of Askeladd. This one moment changed Thorfinn forever, and he vowed to avenge his father. Thorfinn followed Askladd everywhere and even joined his group in order to become powerful enough to kill him one day.
1Eren Yeager – Attack On Titan
Eren Yeager was just an ordinary boy who dreamed of joining the Scouts one day, but everything took a turn for the worse when the Colossal Titan appeared and broke Wall Maria, thereby dooming its inhabitants. In the attack, Eren lost his mother in what may just be one of the most disturbing scenes across all anime and swore to kill every last Titan.
His hatred for the Titans grew stronger with every passing season, as the once proud hero of the Scout Regiment slowlyturned into a narcissistic dictator. As Eren learned more about the true origins of Titans, his hatred grew even stronger. He realized that the only way for him to find peace in this life was by eliminating not just the Titans, but all the enemies of Paradis Island.
